UltraViolet Nears 8 Million Registered Accounts

Sony Pictures and other movie studios have something to cheer about. UltraViolet, the movies to the cloud-based digital locker service has topped 7 million accounts with 50% of the consumers being aware or at least have heard of the service. This comes just months after the service announced 3 million accounts in June. Lexine Wong, SVP of worldwide marketing with SPHE said;

“Awareness has really risen over the past year”

Further helping the format is its inclusion on DVD and Blu-ray titles. Studios behind the format include Sony Pictures, Warner, Fox, Universal, Paramount, Lionsgate and DreamWorks Animation which have all amped their marketing of UltraViolet as a means to battle iTunes and to some extend, piracy. Wong went on;

“In all of our releases we have links to learn more about UltraViolet because not every consumer knows what it is yet”

Sony and other major studios plan to further market the format with continued television commercials and stickers on Blu-ray/DVD boxes to help educate consumers. An UltraViolet movie can be accessed via a web browser on a Mac or PC or through dedicated apps on Android and iOS. Unlike iTunes digital copy which are far more convenient and can be downloaded for offline viewing like on an airplane, UltraViolet relies on the cloud and a live internet connection. Furthermore, having used both UltraViolet and iTunes digital copy, I can attest to the horrible user experience and confusing interfaces offered by UltraViolet. It’s expected that UltraViolet will soon cross the 8 million registered accounts thresh hold. Wong concluded;

“Every studio has an insert explaining what UltraViolet is, and if you go to the Sony store you’ll find a ‘What is UltraViolet?’ educational link, in addition to banners and planning pages,” Wong said. “We haven’t done a broad-reaching consumer campaign on UV yet because we are waiting for [more] market penetration.”

Of course, it remains to be seen how many of these 8 million accounts are active on a regular bases.